Out of Darkness
by Autobot00001
Summary: Having finally put up with her mother's horrible behavior for the last time, Serenity moves back to Domino City to be with her brother. But will he and his friends be able to protect her from their mother when she comes looking for revenge? Warning: Contains violence, language, and lemon. Please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

Serenity sat in the armchair by the lamp. She was reading William Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew for her Theatre History class. It wasn't a required class, but she still enjoyed it. All of a sudden, Serenity's mother, Lynn, walked in through the front door. She was followed a man in his late forties-early fifties. His very appearance disturbed and even frightened Serenity a little.

"Go to bed, Serenity," Lynn said.

"But Mom," Serenity said, "I'm doing my homework."

"No arguments, young lady!" Lynn barked, "Now go upstairs and get to bed!"

Serenity got out of the chair and walked towards the stairs. As she passed her mother and the man she brought home with her, the man gave her a sinister grin. Serenity trembled as she walked up the stairs. When Serenity got to her room, she closed the door behind her and sat on her bed. A few minutes later, she heard the door to her mother's bedroom close. This sound was followed a few minutes later by the sound of her mother moaning and wailing. Serenity knew what this meant. Her mother was having sex with the man she brought home with her. This wasn't surprising to Serenity. Her mother had sex with many different men. It was this way almost every night for nine years since Serenity was separated from her older brother, Joey, when she was eight.

Knowing that she would most likely be unable to get more reading done that night, and seeing as how it was almost ten o'clock, Serenity decided to get ready for bed. She then changed into her pink flannel pajamas and slid under the covers of her bed. As Serenity laid in bed waiting to fall asleep, she drifted deep into her thoughts. She just couldn't understand why her mother was like that with her. It had all started two years ago when Serenity returned home from the Battle City tournament after her eye operation. Ever since then, Lynn had become vicious, strict, and demanding, and had been sleeping with all these strange men like the one she was with now. Serenity didn't know why her mother was doing this, but before she could think about it any further, she fell into a deep sleep. And as she slept, she had one of the worst nightmares in her life.

_Serenity stood in a dark place. She didn't know where she was, but she didn't like it one bit. Suddenly she looked up and saw her brother Joey._

"_Joey!" Serenity shouted as she started running towards him. Suddenly, as she got closer to her brother, the darkness around Serenity started to engulf her brother, and within moments, Joey disappeared, "Joey! No! Come back!"_

Serenity shot up with a gasp and looked around. She was still in her bedroom. As she sat there on the bed, Serenity put her hands on her face and started crying. She couldn't take this life anymore. She wanted to be with her brother. After a few minutes, Serenity went left her bedroom and went downstairs for a glass of water. As she drank her water, she decided that enough was enough. She had to get out of there. Spotting her mother's wallet, Serenity took it and took a fifty-dollar bill out of it for a train ticket to Domino City. She then slipped her shoes on and grabbed her cellphone. Suddenly, Serenity heard footsteps behind her. She turned around and jumped as she saw the man her mother came home with standing there in only his boxer shorts.

"Uh…can I help you?" Serenity asked, pretending to be polite.

"I certainly hope so," the man said, "I just got done fucking your mother, and she said that I can help myself to anything in the kitchen."

Serenity backed away from the man a bit as he slowly approached her.

The man then smirked evilly at her, "And I'm in the mood for a little dessert."

Serenity's eyes widened in terror as the horrible man leaned in and tried to kiss her. Without any warning, she kicked the man in his private area and he slowly fell to the floor clutching it in pain. Not wanting the opportunity to go to waste, Serenity bolted out of the house and started running. Ten minutes later, after becoming annoyed by all the commotion, Lynn came downstairs to find her boyfriend on the floor in pain.

"What the Hell happened?!" Lynn shouted.

"Your bitch daughter kicked me in the nuts is what the Hell happened!" her boyfriend exclaimed in rage and agony.

Lynn looked around, but there was no sign of Serenity anywhere. She then saw that her wallet had been moved onto the kitchen counter. Picking it up and looking in it, Lynn discovered that a fifty-dollar bill had been taken out of it. She also discovered that Serenity's cellphone was missing as well. As if by instinct, Lynn picked up the phone and dialed Serenity's cellphone.

* * *

Serenity ran as fast as she could down the sidewalk towards the nearby train station. As she ran, tears started streaming down from her eyes. How could her mother just willingly let some stranger into their house that almost raped her? How could she mistreat Serenity and keep her isolated for years?

Suddenly, Serenity's cellphone rang. She looked at it and saw that it was her mother before answering it.

"What?!" Serenity shouted into her phone.

"_Serenity Elizabeth Wheeler! What is the meaning of this!?" _Lynn yelled from the other end of the line.

"I'm leaving!" Serenity said in frustration, "I never want to see you again!"

"_How dare you speak to me that way!"_ Lynn shouted angrily, _"Now you listen to me! I'm your mother and I demand that you come home this instance and apologize to Greg for assaulting him as well young lady! You are big trouble when you get home!"_

In that moment, Serenity's anger increased, "First of all, I only assaulted your so-called boyfriend to defend myself because he tried to rape me! And second, this place is not my home! You never gave me a true home and you were never my mother!"

Serenity didn't know since they were talking on the phone, but Lynn was baffled, _"Excuse me?!"_

Serenity started breathing heavily as she became even more emotional, "All my life you've kept me secluded and cut off from the rest of the world! How could you keep me in a hospital and not let me have any friends when I needed them the most?!"

"_I did it to protect you!"_ Lynn exclaimed.

"If that's true, then how could you take me with you but leave Joey behind to fend for himself and be beaten and abused by a man who was unfit to raise a child?!" Serenity cried.

"_Joseph would have eventually become like your father!"_ Lynn tried to explain, _"Everyday that boy was becoming more like him from his rude speech patterns to taking you to places and not even telling me! I knew if I had taken him with us he would have ruined us and would have made you lose your chances to get your operation because I had to raise two children on minimum wage!"_

"Stop! Just stop!" Serenity shouted into her phone, "I don't want to hear anymore of your lies! You obviously don't see that if it weren't for Joey, I never would've gotten my eye operation! He's my real family, and as soon as I'm gone, he'll take care of me! I'm going back to my real home now, and I hope I never see you again!"

"_That won't happen!"_ Lynn yelled, _"You forget, you are still under aged and I have custody of you! Your brother will never gain custody of you with his criminal record! And whether by me or by order of the courts, you will come home! I won custody of you before and I can do it again!"_

"Not this time!" Serenity said before throwing her cellphone on the ground and smashing it with her foot. It was settled. Serenity was going back to Domino.

* * *

A few minutes later, Serenity arrived at the train station and approached the ticket booth. The lady in the booth looked at her with a friendly smile, "Hi, can I help you with something, sweetie?"

"Yes," Serenity said, "I need a one-way ticket to Domino City."

"Alright, your train is at platform three and it leaves in ten minutes, that'll be thirty dollars," the ticket lady said. Serenity gave her the fifty-dollar bill and took off running as soon as she gave her the ticket, "Wait! You forgot your change!"

"Keep it!" Serenity shouted back.

Soon, Serenity got onto the train and took her seat. A few minutes later, the train started moving. Serenity couldn't believe her luck. She was finally leaving her mother and going to live with Joey. But as Serenity drifted back to sleep as she looked out the window, she knew in her heart that this was not over. Not by a long shot.

* * *

**Me: Well, what do you guys think? I know, I already have another series about Serenity, but I REALLY wanted to write this one. Mostly because I wanted to write one that made a bit more sense. I own none of the characters other than Lynn's boyfriend Greg, and the name Lynn was given to Mrs. Wheeler by my good friend and fellow FanFiction writer, white pedal. Please read and review if you like it.**


	2. Chapter 2

_Three-year-old Joey Wheeler sat up against the wall in the hospital hallway. He heard raised voices coming from his mother's hospital room as his parents, Lynn and Jordan Wheeler, argued with the doctor._

_"What the fuck do you mean my daughter's got bad eyesight?!" Joey heard his father yell in frustration. Joey had heard his father swear many times when they were at home, but it was still terrifying for him._

_Joey peered through the crack in the door and saw his father Jordan, a young man of twenty-one who bore a striking resemblance to his son with his dirty-blonde hair and dark brown eyes, his mother Lynn, who had short auburn hair that was curled and grey-green eyes and was wearing a hospital gown and laid in bed, and a man with grey hair wearing a white lab coat, who Joey assumed was the doctor._

_"Mister Wheeler, please calm down," the doctor said, "We got your daughter's test results back and she has been diagnosed with Congenital Glaucoma. It's a disease that compresses the vessels in her eyes where the fluids are supposed to drain out and it affects her vision by blurring it sometimes, and when she gets older the fluids that cannot pass through will cause pressure in her eyes and damage them and she will become blind, and according to our records the disease is a genetic trait in your family."_

_Jordan was wide-eyed in disbelief, "Genetic?! It's not from my family! How could my daughter get it?! And if that's true, how come our son doesn't have bad eyesight?!"_

_"When Congenital Glaucoma is a family trait, it's passed on from either the mother or the father," the doctor explained, "And since you never had the illness, Mister Wheeler, that means your wife has passed it down to your daughter. And while it can effect both children, the disease commonly effects the second born child, we already checked your son to see if he had the virus but he is perfectly healthy."_

_"When is Serenity supposed to go blind from the disease, doctor?" Lynn asked as calm as she could, while her husband was still furious._

_The Doctor looks at them with a sad expression, "She will probably lose her eyesight when she enters her early teens, Congenital Glaucoma takes years to take its full effect, it often doesn't happen until some people are in their early twenties or teens."_

_Joey still didn't know what was really going on, but seeing the expression on the doctor and his father's faces, he knew it wasn't good and his sister was in trouble if her condition was really that serious._

_"What can we do to prevent her from going blind as a bat then?!" Jordan demanded._

_"There is a surgical procedure that we can perform when the time comes when your daughter's illness starts to get worse and her vision starts to fade away. When it happens we can examine her and see what procedure we could do and save her sight. But we would have to hurry when it happens because when the disease completely blinds Serenity, we cannot do anything about it because her eyes will be damaged by the compressed vessel's and it will be difficult to repair her sight by then. So when the time comes, you better bring her in before it's too late."_

_Jordan clenched his fists to where his knuckles turned white. As the Doctor left the room, Joey jumped back against the wall. Since the door was still open, Joey peered back into the room to see that his father was still yelling, "This isn't right! She was supposed to be born healthy!" Jordan then turned to his wife, "How the hell could you not tell me about that disease being a family trait?! What? Did you have bad eyesight and get surgery without telling me?! If you told me about it then after Joseph was born, we wouldn't have had another child! The surgery could probably cost us a fortune!"_

_Lynn glared at him, "Don't blame me for this! I never had the disease! I didn't know Serenity would become ill, especially like that!"_

_"Liar!" Jordan boomed, frightening Joey a little, "The doctor said it was genetic and I never had that disease so it has to be you! You knew that this would probably have happened if you had the baby! If that was the case then you should've had an abortion! Because now Serenity is going to suffer and will be blind for the rest of her life when she gets older if she doesn't get that surgery! Do you know how serious this is, Lynn?!"_

_"Well it's not my fault, you drunk!" Lynn shouted, "We'll just have to pay for her surgery when the time comes, if we have enough money and if you haven't gambled it away by then."_

_Jordan growled, "Don't start with me! And if Serenity does go blind when she grows up, you will be the one to blame!" After finishing his sentence, Jordan yelled and flipped a table over, causing a loud crashing sound._

Joey shot up like a rocket and gasped. That was one of the worst dreams he'd ever had, only it wasn't just a dream.

It was a memory.

Joey took a few deep breaths as he remembered what happened on the day Serenity was born. Serenity was diagnosed with an eye disease called Congenital Glaucoma and because of that she didn't see very well as she grew up, and because of the disease it caused tension in the Wheeler home. Jordan started to drink and gamble more because of it, and soon he got physically violent with Joey and Serenity. And he got even angrier at Serenity because over the past eight years of her life while she still lived with her father, her medical bills were increasing, and because Jordan gambled with his money he could hardly pay for the appointments. And then one day, when he got the bill from Serenity's last check up in Domino Hospital, he screamed at her and that was when he wished she were never born, and a month later, Lynn and Jordan ended up getting a divorce and Lynn took custody of Serenity. After Lynn and Serenity left, Jordan stopped caring for his daughter and never sent his ex-wife money to save up for the operation, and when Lynn told Jordan the surgery was three million dollars, he wanted nothing to do with Serenity ever again.

Joey, on the other hand, loved his little sister more than life itself. Ever since Serenity was a baby, Joey was always the one who took care of her, from feeding her and changing her diapers, to reading her bedtime stories and rocking her to sleep. Joey was also the one who took most of the beatings from their father so Serenity wouldn't have to. He was her brother, protector and also, her father figure. But after Lynn separated him and Serenity, life didn't get much better for Joey. He had to live with an alcoholic and abusive father and, because he had to steal in order to keep eating, got into fights on the streets and was in a gang, got a criminal record. But the worst part of it was that he had to live far apart from his sister and everyday he would worry if she was doing okay, and worried about her eyesight.

Then six years later, Joey's nightmare became reality when Serenity, who he saw for the first time as a young woman, sent him a video tape and told him the time had come and she was about to go blind and that she wanted to see him for the last time before that happened. Joey had to do something before it was too late or his sister would pay the ultimate price of seeing complete darkness for the rest of her life. When he heard Serenity say that the operation was three million dollars he had to find a way to get the money. Then by luck, he was chosen to enter the Duelist Kingdom Duel Monsters tournament where the prize money was three million dollars. While at Duelist Kingdom, Joey did everything in his power to win every duel on the island but was eventually defeated by his best friend, Yugi Moto. Yugi of course had no interest in the money, and gave it to Joey to pay for Serenity's operation. By the time he got home, he paid the hospital and Serenity ended up finally getting her operation. When the operation was over, the doctors said it was a complete success and when Serenity took her bandages off, she saw clearly and much better for the first time in her life.

Joey was extremely happy that he had saved his sister from losing her sight. Now that she could see better for a long time, she would be able to stand on her own and take control of her life and no longer live in the hospital.

As Joey prepared to get out of bed, he felt something holding his arm. He looked over and saw his girlfriend Sarah sleeping next to him, clutching his arm. She was a beautiful girl about a year younger than him with long black hair and dark blue eyes. They had met a year ago when Joey was doing volunteer work with Tristan at the homeless shelter for school community service. Sarah was one of the volunteers and they hit it off pretty fast, and it wasn't long before they fell in love. Joey smiled at her, but then he realized that they were both naked, and that's when it came back to him. Last night Joey asked Sarah to marry him, to which she happily said yes, and then they came back to Joey's place and, since Jordan was in another drunken sleep, made love for the first time in Joey's bedroom.

"Hey. Sarah, wake up," Joey said as he gently nudged Sarah awake.

As Sarah woke up, she yawned and smiled at him, "Morning, Jo-man."

"Morning," Joey greeted her, "I think we'd better get out of here before my old man wakes up."

"Right," Sarah agreed, "And let's do this at my place next time, okay?"

"Agreed," Joey said. And with that, he and Sarah got out of bed and started getting dressed, "So how you feeling, babe?"

"A little sore, but not bad," Sarah commented.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Joey apologized.

"About what?" Sarah asked, "You were actually pretty awesome. Then again, that was my first time too, and they say that it only gets better."

"True," Joey said, sounding a little down and looked at the ground.

Sarah became worried, "You okay, Joey?" she asked.

"Not really," Joey said.

Sarah knew that look on Joey's face all too well, "Is this about your sister?"

Joey nodded, "Yeah, I know that Serenity's supposed to be free to live her own life now that she's had her operation, but she hasn't called me or written to me in two years. And every time I try calling her, ma says she's not available. I'm really worried about her, Sarah. The last time I saw her was when I came back from Egypt and was at the airport."

"I know," Sarah said as she and Joey finished getting dressed, "But don't worry, Joey. I'm sure she's fine."

Suddenly, Joey and Sarah heard a loud, fast knock on the door.

"Who could that be?" Joey said in confusion. He and Sarah then went to the door and opened it, and standing there was Serenity, still in her pink flannel pajamas, "Serenity?! What are you doing here?!" Joey closed the door behind him and Sarah, and Serenity immediately wrapped her arms around him tightly and started crying heavily.

"It was horrible, Joey! I can't believe mom would do such a thing!" Serenity sobbed.

"Wait! Ma?!" Joey said as he broke the hug and looked at his little sister, "What happened, sis? What did ma do?"

Serenity wiped her tears away and looked at her brother, "Well…she brought a guy home last night and when I went downstairs to get my stuff to come here, he…he…"

"What did he do, Serenity?" Joey asked.

"He tried to rape me!" Serenity cried.

"WHAT?! Why that son of a bitch!" Joey shouted.

"Joey, calm down!" Sarah said, "Now's not the time to get angry. Right now, your sister needs you."

Joey took a deep breath to release his stress, "Right. But you really shouldn't have come here, Serenity. What if dad woke up and saw you?"

"I don't care, Joey! Any where's better than staying with mom!" Serenity sobbed.

Joey wrapped his arms back around Serenity and held her close as he rubbed his hand on her back, "It's okay, sis. I'm here now. But as much as I'd love for you to stay here, I don't think there's anything I can do. Ma still has custody of you and I still have a criminal record, not to mention dad is…well dad."

"Oh Joey! What am I going to do!" Serenity cried, "I can't go back to mom! Not after what I went through with her last night, and for the past two years!"

"Hey, no worries sis, we'll think of something," Joey said, "But even if I do get custody, you still can't stay with me because I don't have my own place yet, and there is no way in hell that I'm letting you stay with our father either." Suddenly, Joey had an idea. "But I think I know some friends who might be able to take you in."

Serenity looked up at Joey with tears in her eyes, "Who?"

Joey smiled at her, "You'll see."

* * *

A few minutes later, Serenity found herself in the backseat of Sarah's car heading somewhere with Sarah and Joey. Joey didn't say where they were going, but frankly Serenity didn't care, anywhere is better than being at home with her mother. Soon, Serenity looked up at Sarah, "So…your name is Sarah is it?"

Sarah looked at Serenity in her rear-view mirror, "Yes?"

"How do you know my big brother?" Serenity asked her.

"We're…kinda in a serious relationship," Sarah explained, "He's actually told me quite a lot about you."

"Really?" Serenity said before turning to brother, "Why didn't you tell me you had a girlfriend, Joey?"

"Well I tried calling you, but ma said you weren't home, and all the letters I've sent you came back to me with the words 'return to sender' stamped on them," Joey explained.

"Really?" Serenity said with a frown on her face, "…Of course, so that's why you haven't received my letters."

"And I'm not really Joey's girlfriend anymore," Sarah said.

Serenity was shocked, "Wait, you two are breaking up now?" Serenity asked, "I thought you two were in a serious relationship?"

"She's not breaking up with me, Serenity," Joey said, "The reason she's not my girlfriend anymore is because…she's my fiancé."

Suddenly, Serenity's eyes widened, "You're getting married?!"

Joey looked back at his sister with a big smile, "Yep. I proposed to her last night, and she said yes."

"Oh Joey, that's wonderful!" Serenity squealed in excitement.

"Yeah, now all we need to do is find someone to pay for the wedding," Sarah commented.

"Why? Can't your parents help plan the wedding, Sarah?" Serenity asked in confusion.

Sarah had a small frown on her face, "It's kinda complicated, Serenity," Sarah explained, "Let's just say my parents and I aren't very close."

"Really?" Serenity asked, "Oh, I'm sorry for bringing that up Sarah, I didn't know."

"That's alright Serenity, you didn't know," Sarah said before driving up to an apartment building, "This the place, Joey?"

Joey nodded, "Yep, this is it."

* * *

Meanwhile, inside one of the apartments, Ryou Bakura walked into the kitchen to find his long time girlfriend, Daiana Whethers, cooking breakfast. He then walked over to her and put his arms around her from behind and kissed her cheek.

"Morning." Ryou said with a smile.

Daiana turned her head and smiled, "Morning Ryou," she sweetly greeted him, "how'd you sleep?"

"Wonderfully, love," Ryou sat at the kitchen table, he sniffed the air and smiled, "my, that smells delicious."

"Chocolate chip pancakes, one of your favorites," Daiana smiled, suddenly the young couple heard a knock at the door, "Huh? Who could that be?"

"I didn't expect any visitors," Ryou said and got up from his chair, "You wait here, Daiana. I'll go see who it is."

Ryou then went over to the door, and when he opened it he was shocked to find Joey, Sarah, and Serenity standing there, "Joey? What are you doing here?"

"Hey Ryou," Joey started, "Sorry for dropping by unannounced Ryou, but I was wondering if you could help me out on something?"

Ryou blinked, "Uh, sure what is it?"

"I was wondering if you could let my sister Serenity stay with you and your girlfriend for a while, would that be okay with you?"

Ryou turned and saw Serenity, standing in her pink pajamas, "Serenity?" Ryou said in surprised, "How did you get here? Aren't you supposed to be back home?"

Serenity looked at Ryou with a sad expression, "Well…things got a little complicated back where I lived."

Joey looks at Ryou, "My sister left home because of problems with our mother, and I was wondering if you could take her in until everything gets settled."

Ryou looked back and forth at the Wheeler siblings, he saw Joey's worry in his eyes while he tried to remain calm and then saw Serenity's sad face. Looking at them made Ryou realize that he needed to help them.

"Alright Joey," Ryou said, "We'll let Serenity stay with us, and she can stay for as long as she wants."

Joey smiled and was relieved, "Thanks man, I owe you one," Joey said before turning to his sister, "You'll be okay here, sis. We'll find a way to get through this, I promise."

Serenity smiled and hugged Joey, "I know you will Joey, you have done so much for me and came through on every promise you made. You truly are the best big brother a sister can have."

Joey hugged his sister back, "I'll do whatever I can, I promise you won't go back to ma, I'll fight her if it's the last thing I do."

They broke their hug and Joey started walking away with Sarah, but turned his head to see his sister with sadness in both their eyes as he walked away. This was a nightmare for Joey, his baby sister was forced to run away from home because of their mother's negligence and had to come back their old dirty apartment where their drunken father was for safety. He never wanted to be permanently reunited with Serenity under these conditions, but it happened and things were about to get worse because when their mother found out where Serenity was, she would try to get her back and Joey would have to be prepared to fight her, even if she takes him to court.

His mother took his sister away before, but he'd be damned if he let her separate them again.

As Joey and Sarah left, Ryou showed Serenity into the apartment. It wasn't big but wasn't small either, everything was clean and Serenity felt more relaxed in the Bakura residence from its welcoming atmosphere.

"We don't have a guest room, but you're more than welcome to use the sofa bed," Ryou told her.

Serenity gave Ryou a warm smile, "Thanks Ryou. I appreciate it."

Moments later, Daiana came out from the kitchen as she was stirring pancake batter in a bowl, "Oh, hello," she said sweetly.

Serenity looked over and saw the ravened haired girl with a pink bow and warm honey brown eyes.

"Daiana, this is Serenity, Joey's little sister," Ryou introduced, "Serenity, this is my girlfriend, Daiana."

"It's nice to meet you, Daiana," Serenity said with a smile.

"It's nice to meet you too, Serenity," Daiana responded, "Joey and Ryou have told me a lot about you."

"Like what?" Serenity asked.

"Well, you were diagnosed with a virus that affected your eyesight called Congenital Glaucoma, and you were about to go blind, but Joey saved your eyesight by winning you three million dollars in Duelist Kingdom to pay for your operation," Daiana started, "And after the operation you went to Battle City to watch your brother duel in the Finals."

Serenity was extremely surprised about how much Daiana knew about her, "Wow, they really have told you a lot about me."

"Not only that, but Serenity also saved my life," Ryou said.

Daiana's eyes widened and looked over at Serenity, "What?! Really?!"

Serenity blushed in embarrassment, "Well, I wouldn't say that. All I did was convince Kaiba to get Ryou medical attention after he was injured in his duel with Yugi."

Suddenly, much to her surprise, Daiana took Serenity's hand and gave her an accepting and grateful smile, "Thank you, Serenity."

Serenity smiled back at her, "You're welcome, Daiana. You and Ryou must be pretty close."

"We are," Daiana commented, "I don't know what I'd do without him." She then let go of Serenity's hand, "So what brings you here, Serenity?"

"She's going to be staying with us for as long as she needs to, Daiana," Ryou explained.

"Really?" Daiana asked, "Why's that?"

"Well, there were problems back where I lived and I needed to get away from them," Serenity said.

Daiana looked at Serenity in confusion and sympathy, "Really? I'm sorry to hear that, but won't your mom be worried about you being here in Domino by yourself?"

Serenity froze and looked a bit sad, she started to get an image of her mother and remembering the woman made her angry and sad inside, Ryou stepped into the conversation.

"Daiana, I don't think Serenity wants to talk about that right now."

"It's alright, Ryou," Serenity said, "She didn't know, besides I think I owe her an explanation since I'll be staying with you two."

While Serenity didn't want to talk about her mom, she didn't want to keep Ryou or Daiana in the dark about her situation since they are keeping her in their home. It wouldn't be fair to not at least tell them what was going on right now.

Ryou nodded, "Alright."

Daiana had a sad look on her face, "I'm so sorry, that was completely rude of me, I didn't mean to ask such a personal question."

"It's alright Daiana," Serenity says, "You didn't know."

"Why don't we talk about it over breakfast," Daiana suggested, "Do you like chocolate chip pancakes, Serenity?"

Serenity smiled, "That sound delicious."

* * *

About twenty minutes later, Serenity was finishing her breakfast and telling her story to Ryou and Daiana. She told them about how her mother had become more neglectful and bitter towards her over the past two years since she came home from Battle city. She also told the couple how her mother's boyfriend almost raped her the night before and how she ran away after getting in a fight with her mom on the phone. Ryou was furious since he knew what it was like to grow up with a neglectful parent since his father almost never came home from his Archeology expeditions after his mother and sister died in the car accident years before as a child.

It seemed as though Daiana was the one most upset by Serenity's story, as her expression was a mixture of horror and sadness. She held her hands together in concern.

"We're very sorry that happened to you, Serenity," Daiana finally said.

"Thank you, Daiana," Serenity thanked, "And you guys don't know how much it means to me that you're willing to help me."

"We'd do anything for a friend, Serenity," Ryou said.

Serenity smiled, but then she yawned.

"You look tired, Serenity," Daiana commented, "How much sleep did you get last night?"

"Not much, I was on the train most of the night before I got to Domino at four in the morning, so I didn't have time for sleep since I wanted to be awake to go find Joey," Serenity explained.

"Why don't you go take a nap now and when you wake up, we'll go get you some new clothes?" Daiana suggested, "I mean you can't stay in your pajamas the whole time you're here."

Serenity smiled, "Sure. It would be nice to get some new clothes."

Ryou got up and went to the living room to set up the mattress bed, after he got some sheets and blankets, Serenity got into the bed and fell fast asleep.

Daiana was doing the dishes while Ryou came over to help.

"I hope she'll be alright." Daiana said as she washed a dish.

Ryou gave her a smile, "Don't worry, love, she will be."

Daiana put the dish in the sink and held her face as she blushed a bit, "I can't believe I asked her such a question, I feel so embarrassed."

"Don't feel ashamed, you didn't know," Ryou said as he placed his hands on Daiana's shoulders, "but now that we do, we must do our best to make Serenity feel welcome and safe."

Daiana turned her head towards him and smiled, "Right, I'll do my best."

Ryou smiled at his girlfriend, "I know you will." He and Daiana then shared a passionate kiss.

* * *

**Me: I hope you guys enjoyed this new chapter. I want to thank my good friend White Pedal for betaing the story for me and letting me use her OC Daiana as Ryou's girlfriend. I only own the character Sarah in this story. Please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

Lynn sat on the couch as she waited for her lawyer to arrive. As she waited on the couch she was seething, she had never been so humiliated and enraged in her entire life. Not only did Serenity assault her boyfriend, but because of the attack, he dumped Lynn and left the house, and Serenity had the nerve to leave her mother and tell her she was a terrible parent. Lynn felt her blood boil. How dare Serenity say that! She took her daughter away from an angry drunk who abused her and this was the thanks she got? And for Serenity to say she'd rather be with her brother than with her own mother added insult to injury. She was not going to let Serenity get away with it.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Lynn stood up to go answer it. Moments later, she opened the door to find her lawyer, Andrew Collins, standing in the doorway. He was a middle-aged man, in his mid forties, dark hair that was slowly graying and was wearing a light brown suit.

"Good to see you again, Mrs. Wheeler," Mr. Collins greeted.

Lynn nodded to him, "Likewise, Mr. Collin's. I want to talk to you about a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Mr. Collins asked as he followed Lynn into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"My daughter ran away and is in Domino," Lynn explained as she closed the window blinds and sat down next to Andrew.

Andrew raised an eyebrow at her, "And you've called me over here? Why not just call the police?"

Lynn glared at him, "You know why I can't get them involved. Besides, I need your help to get her back. I want that girl to know that I can still win custody of her like I did years ago when I divorced Jordan, and she's going to know that history is about to repeat itself."

Andrew nodded, "Alright. But that shouldn't be a problem. Jordan Wheeler's a drunk, how could he possibly get custody of her? He's proven to the courts that he is an unfit father who does nothing but drinks and gambles his money away, not to mention he has a domestic violence report on him. There is no way the judge will allow your daughter to live with him, especially since we saw the conditions you lived in with him during your marriage."

"It's not Jordan who I will be fighting for custody," Lynn explained, "…It's Joseph."

Mr. Collins looked at Lynn in confusion, "Your son? How can he be a threat to you having custody of Serenity? He's a former gang member and has a criminal record. And I highly doubt he has a high paying job at his age to support his sister."

"Yes, but he will be too stubborn not to fight," Lynn growled, "I know that he will do anything to get custody of Serenity and would go to the ends of the earth for her. He even paid for her eye operation for entering some contest to get the prize money. That boy is more dangerous than I expected, and one false move will surly cost me."

Andrew knew that Lynn was getting upset, so he had no choice but to agree, "Alright, alright. Then what do you want me to do about it?" he asked.

"The same thing you did for me during my divorce." Lynn said.

Andrew raised an eyebrow, "You do know that's illegal, right Lynn? I did it for you once because you were desperate, and if I get caught this time, I will lose my practice as a lawyer and will be behind bars. What's in it for me?"

Lynn smirked at her lawyer, "The same reward I gave you after I received custody of my daughter. I promise that you won't get caught, after all you did so much for me back then." Suddenly, Lynn slid her hand down Andrew's pants and gently gripped his penis, causing him to jump a bit in surprise.

"Lynn, stop!" he said just below a shout.

"Come on Andrew," Lynn said as she pulled her hand out and stood up, "when was the last time we had fun like this?"

"But…I'm married," Andrew said.

"So? That didn't stop you last time," Lynn said as she undid her robe, revealing her naked body, "we did the same thing when I was divorcing Jordan."

"Good point," Andrew said as Lynn bent down and undid his pants and pulled them and his underwear down, revealing his erection.

Lynn then got on top of him and positioned herself, "Now then, do we have a deal, Andrew?"

"Well…uh…ah…" Suddenly, Andrew tensed up as his penis penetrated Lynn.

"Well?" Lynn asked.

"…Deal!" Andrew gasped.

Lynn then smirked as she began moving herself, "That's better."

* * *

Joey walked up the stairs of Sarah's apartment building as he carried a box containing his most prized belongings, including his Duel Disk and Duel Monsters deck, his favorite jacket, a collection of Spider-Man comics, and a framed photo of Serenity. As he walked up the stairs, he couldn't believe how nice and big the building was. It was very clean and had a warm and welcoming feeling, unlike the apartment that he lived in with his father, which was dirty and in a rough neighborhood with a few gangs and street thugs running around and had a few beer cans on the ground, mostly from his father.

Soon, Joey reached the fourth floor and stopped at a door marked '4B' and knocked on it.

"Who is it?" asked a voice from inside the apartment that Joey immediately recognized as Sarah's.

"Hey Sarah! It's Joey!" Joey replied.

Moments later, Sarah opened the door and smiled, "Hey Joey," she greeted before looking at the box in surprise, "Is that everything you own?"

Joey nodded to her, "Yeah, just the stuff I really care about."

"I see," Sarah said, "Well, come on in."

"Thanks," Joey said with a smile as he entered Sarah's apartment. As he stepped inside, his jaw immediately dropped, "Whoa! This place is big! And clean!"

Sarah shrugged, "Nah, it just looks big because I do a lot of cleaning around here."

Joey then looked at Sarah with a big grin on his face, "Well looks like I'm a lucky guy for having a girl who can clean like this!"

Sarah raised an eyebrow at Joey in confusion, "Excuse me?"

"Well, now that we're living together, I don't have to do any cleaning anymore," Joey said.

Sarah's expression of confusion then turned to a smirk, "Don't get used to it, Tiger. Now that we're living together, you're gonna have to do your fair share of cleaning around here too."

Joey had a grimace expression and groaned, "Aw, come on, Sarah! I'm hopeless at cleaning things! I can't even get the vomit stains out of my old man's shirt!"

"That's why I'm gonna teach you how to clean," Sarah said as she placed a hand on Joey's cheek, "We're getting married soon, so you'll need to meet me in the middle."

Joey let out a sigh and then looked at Sarah with a smile, "Okay. If that's what it takes to be a good husband to you, I'll do it."

Sarah's face then formed a smile, "Thanks Joey." She then leaned in and kissed him.

Moments later, Joey broke the kiss, "No problem. So is there anywhere I can put this stuff down? It's a little heavy and my arms are getting sore."

"Uh yeah, you can put it down in the living room over there," Sarah said as she pointed to the living room.

"Thanks," Joey said as he followed Sara into the living room and put the box down while Sarah went and sat down on the couch. Joey joined her and slumped down beside her.

"So what's the plan on how you're gonna help Serenity?" Sarah asked.

Joey looks down, "That's still something I'm trying to figure out, Sarah," he explained, "But all I know is that when ma comes to Domino, we're going to be butting heads with each other in court. She'll be declaring war and won't rest until she gets Serenity back."

"Well if that's what your mother is going to do, you're probably going to need evidence before the court hearings," Sarah suggested, "like proof of your mother neglecting Serenity and stuff like that."

Joey nodded in agreement, "Yeah, but it won't be easy," He started, "I haven't seen ma in almost nine years and I have no idea what she's been doing all this time. The last time I saw her was in the hospital when Serenity got her eye operation two years ago. I can only go by what Serenity told me and she surly would never lie to me about something like this, especially about our own mother."

"Then we're gonna need to look elsewhere for evidence," Sarah stated.

"Yeah, but where?" Joey asked, "I mean ma has paper work that got her custody of Serenity, she was able to prove our dad is a drunk, but what kind of evidence can we get to prove she is neglectful and an unfit parent?"

Sarah shrugged, "I don't think we can get it, it might be difficult since we don't have any papers. But there might be someone who could get it."

Joey looked at his fiancé in confusion, "Who are you talking about?" Suddenly, Joey's eyes widened and he immediately stood up as he realized who Sarah was talking about, "Wait. You don't mean…"

Sarah nodded in displeasure, "I do."

"What!?" Joey shouted, "Sarah no! There's no way he'd help us! I'd rather wear a dog suit again than get on my knees for that guy!"

"There's no other option, Joey!" Sarah argued.

Joey frowned, "He'd never help us on this! He's made it clear time and again that he doesn't give a damn about anyone, especially me, so what makes us think he would help us save my little sister?!"

"He might if we explain our problem to him in a way he'd understand," Sarah explained.

Joey crossed his arms, obviously not convinced, "Yeah right."

Sarah's eyes narrowed, as she grew frustrated, "Then let me put it to you this way, Joey. Would you rather swallow your pride and ask him for help, or lose your sister again? Maybe even forever this time? Like you said, your mom will be declaring war on you and won't rest until she gets Serenity back like she did years ago when she divorced your dad. And if she does win she might make sure no one ever sees or hears from Serenity ever again, are you willing to take that risk Joey?"

Suddenly, Joey froze as Sarah's words caught him off guard and his brain registered what she just said. She was right, this was serious and Serenity is counting on him to help her. If he didn't do something, his mother would win and take Serenity away again. This time it might be permanent and Lynn might make sure that Joey never has contact with his sister again.

Suddenly, he started to remember his childhood. On the day their mother took Serenity away and Joey chased after them.

* * *

_"JOEY!" Serenity shouted from the backseat of her mother's car as Lynn drove away._

_"SERENITY! DON'T GO!" Joey cried as he chased after the car, but failed to catch up to it, "WAIT!"_

_Serenity burst into tears as her mother sped off, "JOEY!"_

* * *

Suddenly, Joey was snapped out of the flashback, "Joey?" Joey looked at Sarah and saw that she was on the brink of crying, "Do it for your sister."

It was a few minutes before Joey spoke up again, "…Are you sure he'll help?"

Sarah shrugged, "I'm not sure of anything, but it's worth a shot."

Joey let out a great sigh and sat back down next to her, "Alright, I'll do it…for Serenity. At this point, I'll do anything to save her."

Sarah smiled at her fiancé, "I know you will. Just like you did for her at Duelist Kingdom," Sarah then leaned in and kissed Joey's cheek, earning her a warm smile.

Joey wrapped his arms around Sarah and held her close, "Thanks babe."

Sarah cuddled up to Joey and sighed in contempt, "No problem." Moments later, Sarah stood up and started walking towards the hallway.

"Hey, where you going?" Joey asked.

Sarah turned back towards Joey and smiled, "I'm gonna go take a shower," she said, "and you're gonna join me."

"Oh," Joey said with a sly smile on his face as he got up and followed Sarah into the bathroom.

* * *

Daiana walked into the living room and saw that Serenity was still asleep on the pullout bed. She smiled and went over and nudged her gently, "Serenity. Wake up."

As Daiana nudged her, Serenity slowly woke up and yawned, "Morning Daiana."

"Morning, Serenity," Daiana greeted her, "you've been asleep for a while."

"What time is it?" Serenity asked as she stretched her arms.

"Eleven AM," Daiana answered.

Serenity looked at Daiana in confusion, "Why'd you only let me sleep for an hour?"

Daiana giggled at Serenity's question, "Actually Serenity, you've slept for more than just an hour," she explained, "You were so tired when you arrived that you slept all day yesterday and all last night."

Serenity looked at Daiana in surprise, "Wow. I guess that train ride took a lot more out of me than I thought."

Daiana shrugged, "Well, you didn't really get much sleep the night before."

"True," Serenity agreed, "So where's Ryou?"

"He went into town with Yugi and Téa," Daiana explained, "He said that he had something important to take care of, and he needed their help with it."

"Why didn't you go with him, Daiana?" Serenity asked.

"He said it was for a surprise for me," Daiana responded, "Plus, I wanted to keep an eye on you and make sure you were alright."

"Oh. Well, thank you, Daiana," Serenity said with a smile.

Daiana smiled back, "My pleasure, Serenity. Now up and at 'em. I'm taking you to the mall today so we can get you some new clothes. Since you'll be staying here, I thought it would good that you had something to wear."

"Okay," Serenity said, "but I didn't bring anything with me. I was so caught up in getting away from home that I only took fifty dollars from my mom for a train ticket."

"Not to worry, you can borrow one of my outfits," Daiana offered.

Serenity smiled, "Okay."

* * *

About forty-five minutes later, Serenity found herself in the passenger's seat of Daiana's car wearing one of Daiana's outfits. It wasn't anything too fancy, just a pink T-shirt and blue jeans, but Serenity was still grateful of Daiana's kindness to her. It could've been that Daiana was still grateful of Serenity saving Ryou's life, or that Daiana just wanted to help Serenity through the situation with her mother. Either way, Serenity knew that she and Daiana were becoming fast friends.

"So Daiana, how did you and Ryou meet?" Serenity asked.

"Well, Ryou and I met when I first transferred to Domino high," Daiana explained, "He was very kind to me and even helped me get adjusted to a new school."

Serenity looked at Daiana, "You mean you're not originally from Domino?"

"No, I was originally from a small town on the other side of the country, but I'd been moving from place to place with my mother ever since she divorced my father when I was little," Daiana continued.

"Your parents got a divorce too? Why?" Serenity asked.

"Well, you can say that my dad wasn't really there for us." Daiana said.

Serenity nodded in understanding, "I see."

"Yeah. So anyways, we came to Domino when I was seventeen," Daiana continued, "There were a lot of guys that apparently had crushes me and I didn't know, but I wasn't really interested in dating. I wasn't really interested in Ryou as a boyfriend at first either because I figured my mom and I would be moving away soon anyways."

"So how did you and Ryou end up together?" Serenity asked.

Daiana kept focusing on the road, but started to look sad, "He was there for me when I needed someone the most. My mother was diagnosed with pneumonia a few days after we arrived in Domino, and died two months later."

Serenity gasped, "Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, Daiana."

"It's okay, Serenity, you didn't know," Daiana reassured, "So after my mother died, I wasn't able to afford to stay in my apartment anymore, but Ryou let me stay with him for as long as I needed. And after we became a couple, it became permanent."

Serenity smiled, "You must really love him."

Daiana smiled back, "I do. I'd be lost without him." Suddenly, Daiana pulled into the parking lot of the Domino Mall and parked the car, "Well, here we are."

Serenity smiled, "Great," she looked back at Daiana as the two of them got out of the car, "I have another question though, before your mom died, how come you said that the two of you would have to move again soon? Was she a business woman that had to be at different places?"

Daiana froze, but she didn't look at Serenity, "Oh…well you can say that my mom and I travel a lot…to get away from things."

Serenity blinked, "Oh I see, I'm sorry that I asked. I was just curious since you said that you had to leave with your mother shortly after arriving to Domino."

"That's fine," Daiana turned her head and smiled, "You're ready to shop?"

Serenity smiles back, "Definitely."

* * *

Serenity had a wonderful time at the mall with Daiana, which wasn't surprising since it was her first taste of true freedom in two years. She had been to the Domino Mall before with Joey, but that was back when she was little, before her mother separated them. After that she had spent most of her life in the hospital, until Joey got her the operation. Serenity and Daiana had gone to three different clothes stores and had purchased eight different outfits. Their next stop was another clothes store calling Urban Planet.

Serenity came out of the changing room and was wearing a pink summer dress with dark frills at the sleeves, "Well? What do you think?"

Daiana looked Serenity over for a few moments, and then smiled, "I like it."

"Me to," Serenity said, "I guess I'm getting this one too."

Suddenly, Serenity was caught off guard as she heard a familiar voice say her name, "Serenity?"

Serenity and Daiana turned to see someone who Serenity was very happy to see, her brother Joey's best friend, Tristan Taylor.

"Tristan!" Serenity shouted as she waved to Tristan and smiled, "It's so good to see you again!"

"It's great to see you again too, Serenity," Tristan greeted as he walked over to her and gave her a hug, "but what are you doing here in Domino? I thought you were still living with your mom."

Serenity then broke the hug and frowned a little, "Well, things got…complicated back home, so I came back to Domino, and now Joey's gonna be trying to get custody of me."

"Really? Wow, are things that bad back home?" Tristan said.

Serenity nodded, "Yeah. But I'm staying with Ryou and Daiana until Joey gets things sorted out."

"Oh, well that's a relief," Tristan said before looking over at Daiana, "Hey Daiana."

"Hi Tristan," Daiana greeted.

"So what are you doing here, Tristan?" Serenity asked.

"I'm just helping my older sister pick out some new clothes for my nephew," Tristan explained.

Serenity looked at Tristan in surprise, "You never told me you had an older sister and a nephew."

"You never asked about it, so I never brought it up," Tristan said.

Serenity then nodded in agreement, "True."

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted when a pleasant-looking woman in her mid-twenties approached the three of them. She had long, dark-brown hair, which was worn back in a ponytail, and had the same brown eyes as Tristan and wore a blue tank top and white jeans, and in her arms was a small three-year-old boy with short brown hair and greenish-blue eyes wearing a red T-shirt and overall jeans.

"Hey Tristan, I need your opinion on something," she said before noticing Serenity and Daiana, "Oh. Hello." She greeted them.

"Hi," Serenity greeted back.

"Serenity, this is my older sister, Lexi, and her son, Daniel," Tristan introduced.

Serenity smiled, "It's nice to meet the both of you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Serenity," Lexi said with a smile, "I've heard a lot about you from Tristan."

"You have?" Serenity asked.

Lexi nodded, "Yeah. And I have to say, you're very pretty."

Serenity's face turned a little pink, "Oh. Well, thank you."

"You're welcome," Lexi said before turning to Tristan and smirking, "I can see why my baby brother has such a huge crush on you."

Serenity blushed even more as Lexi's statement caught her off guard, "He does?"

Tristan's face turned red in embarrassment as he turned to his sister, "Lexi!"

"What? It's true," Lexi responded.

"Yeah, but you didn't have to blurt it out like that!" Tristan exclaimed just below a shout.

"Oh, sorry," Lexi said with a giggle.

It was then that Daiana decided to jump in, "Uh, hey Lexi. Why don't we leave these two to chat a little and I'll help you pick out some cute outfits for your son?"

"Yeah, that'd probably be a good idea," Lexi agreed as she and Daiana walked away to leave Tristan and Serenity to continue their conversation.

Serenity and Tristan stood there for a few moments of awkward silence, not saying anything to one another. They were both completely red in the face and both felt like they had butterflies in their stomachs.

Moments later, Serenity spoke up, "You…like me, Tristan?"

"Well…yeah," Tristan responded.

"…Well, that would explain why you visited me so much in the hospital after my operation, and why you were so nice to me so much during Battle City. But why didn't you ever tell me?" Serenity asked.

"Well, I wanted to give you space and not scare you off from coming on too strong," Tristan explained.

"Oh, I see," Serenity said.

"But if you just want us to be friends, I'll understand," Tristan said.

"Actually, Tristan," Serenity started, "what if I told you I've liked you too?"

"You do?" Tristan asked in surprise, "But what about that date you went on with Duke two years ago?"

Serenity looked at Tristan in confusion, "Date? It wasn't a date. We just went out for ice cream is all. And it wasn't really all that fun since we were swarmed by a group of girls."

"Oh. Well for some reason he said it was a date," Tristan explained.

"I see," Serenity said, "Well, to be honest, I haven't been on a real date before because my mother usually kept me cooped up in the house."

"Okay," Tristan said, "Then in that case, would you like to go on one with me? Maybe we could go to Burger World sometime and grab a bite to eat."

Serenity looked at Tristan and smiled, "Sure, I'd like that. Does tomorrow afternoon sound good?"

"Sounds great," Tristan said with a smile, "I'll pick you up around 1:30, okay?"

"Okay, see you then," Serenity said.

Tristan nodded, "Well, I'd better get back to my sister now."

"Alright. Good seeing you again, Tristan," Serenity stated.

"You too, Serenity," Tristan said as he walked away.

Seconds later, Daiana came back over to Serenity with a smile on her face, "So? What happened?" she asked.

Serenity smiled, "Tristan and I have a date tomorrow."

"That's great, Serenity!" Daiana said excitedly.

"Yeah, but something tells me Joey won't be happy about it," Serenity stated.

* * *

Joey and Sarah stood in the elevator as it climbed to the top floor of the building. As it went up, Joey started growing nervous. While it was true that this was his only choice to help his sister, he still didn't like it one bit that he had to do this.

Sarah looked over at Joey with concern, "You okay, Joey?"

"Yeah," Joey said, "Just a little nervous."

"Don't be. Everything's gonna be okay." Sarah said, trying to reassure him.

"I hope so," Joey responded with a gulp. Moments later, the elevator stopped at the top floor and opened up. Joey and Sarah walked out of the elevator and started walking down the hallway until they came to a door. Joey knocked on the door and heard a familiar voice that was annoying to him.

"I don't want to be disturbed," the voice said.

"Too bad," Joey said as he opened the door, and sitting at his desk was the one person in the whole world who could help him find the evidence he needed to stop his mother: the CEO of KaibaCorp himself, Seto Kaiba.

Kaiba looked up at Joey and Sarah and was immediately irritated, "Oh great."

* * *

**Me: Well, I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter. Sorry for that bit of lemon at the beginning, but there will be moments like that in this story. Also, in case anyone hasn't figured it out yet, yes I am a huge supporter of Ardentshipping (Tristan and Serenity), and I think that that's a shipping that deserves a lot more love. I only own Sarah and Mr. Collins, and I came up with those names for Tristan's sister and nephew, and Lynn is my friend White Pedal's name for Mrs. Wheeler. I also want to thank White Pedal for helping me out so much with this story. Please read and review!**


	4. Chapter 4

For a while, no one said anything. Joey and Kaiba just stared each other down waiting for one of them to say something. A few moments later, Kaiba spoke up.

"I didn't answer the door because I didn't want to speak to anyone," he said, "Especially you, Wheeler."

"Save it, Kaiba," Joey said as he and Sarah entered Kaiba's office, "We need your help."

Kaiba looked at Joey with a raised eyebrow, "Help with what? Rolling over? Sitting? Doing your business outside?" he asked sarcastically, "I'm not interested, Wheeler. Not that it's any business to you, but I have a new Duel Disk to design and a company to run. Now get lost."

Being once again fed up with his insults, Joey walked over to Kaiba's desk, slammed his hands down and glared at him, "Look, rich boy! I haven't been having a very good week!" he shouted, "I'm gonna be fighting for custody of my little sister in two weeks, and I'm pretty sure I'm gonna lose!"

Kaiba looked up at Joey in confusion, "Wait. You mean that this is about a custody battle?"

It was at this point that Sarah decided to step into the conversation, "Yes. Serenity needs our help."

Kaiba then looked over at Sarah, obviously not knowing who she was, "And you are?"

"I'm Joey's fiancé, Sarah," she answered.

"Fiancé, huh?" Kaiba said as his expression turned from a glare to a smirk, "Well imagine that. And here I thought you would either spend the rest of your life either alone or with a bitch, but you actually got with a human, and a very pretty one at that. I must admit I'm impressed, Wheeler."

"Shut it with the dog insults for once, Kaiba!" Joey snarled.

Seto rolled his eyes, "So why exactly are you fighting for custody of your sister? Last I heard, she lives with your mother."

"She did live with her, but not anymore," Joey explained as he and Sarah sat down, "for the past two years my mother was neglecting my little sister and was acting vicious towards her. Serenity told me that ma did a complete one-eighty after she returned home from Battle City and changed, she used to care for Serenity but now she treats her like trash. If that's how ma is going to act with Serenity, then she doesn't deserve to be a mother, and I won't let her treat my sister like that anymore, but I can't do it alone."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow, "And you've come to me because?"

"I need evidence proving that she is an unfit mother to my sister," Joey continued, "but since I can't get it myself, I was hoping you could help."

"Is that so?" Kaiba said, "So why come to me? Incase you've forgotten, I hate your guts."

Joey let out a great sigh. He knew that Kaiba would ask that eventually, "Because I have no choice. If I don't get custody of Serenity, who knows what'll happen to her? I might never see her again."

"Please Kaiba, you have to help us," Sarah said, once again stepping into the conversation, "Serenity suffered all her life because of her illness and almost went blind because of it, but now she's suffering by the hands of a woman who is supposed to be her mother. We came to you because you of all people should know what it's like to be neglected and be thrown away. I mean, what if it were you and Mokuba in the same situation?"

Sarah's last sentence caught Kaiba completely off guard. He knew that if he and Mokuba were ever in a situation like that, he'd do anything to help his little brother. Kaiba closed his eyes as he remembered everything that he and Mokuba went through over the years, from their parents' deaths and being in the orphanage by their greedy relatives when they took their father's money that was supposed to go to him and Mokuba, to their stepfather Gozaburo torturing them until Seto stopped him and took his company away and Pegasus kidnapping Mokuba and stealing his soul. Kaiba did everything to save his brother and make sure they both had a better life. And now Joey Wheeler, the one person he couldn't stand more than anyone on Earth, was coming to him for help because he wanted to save his little sister. It was as if Kaiba was seeing himself in Joey for once.

Kaiba was soon snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of Joey's voice, "So what's it gonna be, rich boy?"

Kaiba looked up and gave Joey a glare, "You must be extremely desperate to come to me for help." he said but sounding harsh.

Joey nodded, "I am."

"…Alright, I'll help," Kaiba responded, "What kind of evidence do you need?"

"Pretty much anything," Joey answered, "Police reports, medical records, anything I can use against my mother in court."

Kaiba nodded, "I'll see what I can do. And I'll let you have one of my lawyers represent you in court."

"Okay," Joey said, "And I never thought I'd say this, but thanks, Kaiba."

"Whatever," Kaiba said, "Just remember, Wheeler, when this is over, you owe me big time."

"Only if I win, I'm counting on you and your lawyer to save my sister," Joey responded as he and Sarah got up and left Kaiba's office. As they walked down the hallway, Joey looked at Sarah with a small smile, "Well that went better than I thought it would."

"It did," Sarah agreed, "That was very brave of you, Joey."

"Yeah," Joey said, "I just hope this works, babe."

Sarah nodded, "Me too. Because now Serenity's fate isn't only in our hands, but Kaiba's as well."

"Yeah," Joey said, "And he only has two weeks to get the evidence we need."

Sarah looked at Joey, "Yeah, but until then, we'll have to wait. Now let's head home."

"You go ahead, I think I left something at my dad's place," Joey responded.

Sarah looked at Joey in confusion, "What did you leave behind?"

"…Something very important to me," Joey answered.

"Okay, just be careful, Tiger," Sarah said with worry.

Joey looked over at Sarah and grinned, "Hey, it's me."

* * *

Serenity stood outside of Ryou and Daiana's apartment building as she waited for Tristan to pick her up for their date. She wore a white long-sleeved shirt with buttons in the front and black jeans, her hair was brushed and wore a locket. As Serenity waited for Tristan to arrive, she started to get a little nervous. While it was true that Tristan was a very sweet guy, she often wondered what he was like, in the beginning when they first met after her eye operation he told her lies to impress her and after finding out all of those things weren't true she wondered if he was someone to be trusted. While he is Joey's best friend, she was disappointed that he wasn't honest with her from the beginning, when truth be told even before seeing him while she still had her bandages on, she actually liked him…a lot.

As Serenity stood there pondering these things, she soon lost her train of thought as she heard the rumbling sound of a motorcycle engine. She then looked up to see someone drive up to her on a motorcycle. He wore a red motorcycle jacket, blue jeans, and a black motorcycle helmet. After reaching the curb where Serenity was waiting, the man turned his motorcycle off and removed his helmet, revealing himself to be Tristan. Tristan then looked at Serenity and smiled, "Hey Serenity."

Serenity looked at Tristan's motorcycle in amazement, "Wow Tristan, I didn't know you had a motorcycle."

Tristan nodded, "Yeah, I've had it since I was sixteen," he explained, "It was a birthday present from my sister."

"That's cool," Serenity said with a smile, "but do you have an extra helmet for me?"

"Yep," Tristan said as he brought out another helmet and handed it to her, "I always come prepared."

Serenity smiled as she put the helmet on, "Thanks," she said as she climbed onto Tristan's motorcycle and put her arms around his waist, "So are we still going to Burger World?"

"Actually, I was thinking that maybe we could go somewhere else," Tristan suggested, "There's this new café up the street that we could go to instead."

Serenity smiled, "Okay, what made you change your mind?"

"Well, I used to work there," Tristan explained, "and let's just say I didn't exactly have that much of a pleasant experience at that place."

"Oh, I see," Serenity said, "Well that's okay, I understand."

Tristan then started his motorcycle back up and started driving off. Serenity held him tightly as he drove and closed her eyes for a moment because she was a little scared, but then opened her eyes to see that nothing bad had happened. It was actually a little fun. Soon, Tristan stopped his bike at a place called Domino Café.

Serenity then took her helmet off and got off the bike, "You're a pretty good driver, Tristan," she said with a smile.

Tristan smiled back at her, "Thanks. Did you have fun?"

Serenity shrugged a bit, "Well, I was a little scared at first, but after a few minutes it was kinda fun."

"That's good," Tristan said. He and Serenity then went inside and sat down at one of the tables and looked at the menus.

* * *

"So what sounds good to you?" Serenity asked.

"I think I'll start with an iced tea," Tristan started, "Then I guess I'll get a cup of soup and a half sandwich."

"Okay," Serenity said, "I think I'll do the same, but I'm gonna have the cappuccino instead."

Soon their thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice, "Hello, welcome to Domino Café, my name is-."

The waitress was cut off from completing her sentence when Tristan looked up in utter shock to see who it was, "Téa?!"

And sure enough, it was Téa Gardner, another one of Tristan and Serenity's friends. Téa was surprised the see Tristan and Serenity, "Tristan!? Serenity!?"

"I didn't know you worked here," Serenity said in surprise.

Téa shrugged, "Yeah, well it's only a temporary thing. I'm just getting the last amount of money I need for dance school, and at least this is better than Burger World."

"That's weird," Tristan stated, "We were about to go to Burger World when we decided to come here."

Téa looked at Tristan with a smirk, "Still haven't gotten over what happened when we worked there, huh Tristan?"

"What happened?" Serenity asked.

"It's a long story, I'd rather not talk about it," Tristan explained.

Serenity nodded in understanding, "Okay."

Téa then turned to Serenity, "Anyways, it's good to see you again, Serenity. Ryou told me and Yugi that you were back in town."

Serenity looked at her in confusion, "He did? What else did he tell you guys?"

"He told us about your problems with your mom and that you're staying with him and Daiana," Téa said, "That was pretty much it."

"Oh, yeah," Serenity said with a hint of sadness in her voice, "…things were getting pretty complicated at home."

Téa then put her hand on Serenity's shoulder, "It's okay, you don't have to tell me," she said with a warm smile, "Oh, where are my manners? Can I take your guys' orders?"

"Oh, sure," Serenity said in realization, "Um, I'll start with a cappuccino, and you said you wanted an iced tea, right Tristan?"

Tristan nodded, "Yep. And a cup of the soup of the day and half a grilled cheese sandwich for both of us."

"Coming right up," Téa said as she wrote down their orders and took them to the back.

As Téa took the orders back to the kitchen, Serenity turned back towards Tristan, "So how have you been, Tristan?" she asked.

"I've been doing pretty well. I'm already in college," Tristan explained.

Serenity looked at Tristan in surprise, "Really? What major are you taking?"

"Business," Tristan responded.

"Business?" Serenity asked.

Tristan nodded, "Yep, I plan to open my own motorcycle shop after I graduate and save up enough money."

Serenity smiled, "That's cool. You must be a pretty good mechanic too, seeing how much you love to ride your bike."

Tristan shrugged, "Well I don't mean to brag, but I am a bit. What about you?"

"I'm still in high school, but something tells me that I'll need to transfer if Joey wins custody of me," Serenity explained, "But I'm hoping after I graduate I would be able to get into acting."

"Acting, huh?" Tristan said.

"Yeah, but I'll tell you about it later when things start to cool down," Serenity said

Tristan nodded in understanding, "Okay. Well at least you're doing good with your studies."

Serenity smiled, "Thanks Tristan," she said before deciding to change the subject, "So your sister seems really nice."

"She is, but she can be a major pain sometimes," Tristan explained, "but I still love her."

"What's the rest of your family like?" Serenity asked.

"Well, there's my mom, and she's a sweet lady," Tristan continued, "And of course, there's my nephew who we just met."

Serenity looked at Tristan in confusion, seeing as how he didn't mention his father, "What about your father?"

A look of discomfort formed on Tristan's face, "Well, my dad isn't around, my family and I don't speak of him."

Serenity then blushed in embarrassment, "Oh, I'm sorry, Tristan. I didn't mean to-,"

Before Serenity could finish her sentence, Tristan cut her off, "It's alright, Serenity."

Another smile formed on Serenity's face before she noticed Téa coming back with their drinks.

"Okay. One cappuccino," Téa said as she handed Serenity her drink, "Careful though, it's really hot."

"Thanks Téa," Serenity said gratefully.

Téa smiled at her before handing Tristan his drink, "And one iced tea."

"Thanks," Tristan responded.

* * *

After lunch, Tristan and Serenity decided to go for a walk in the near-by park. At first, Tristan wasn't sure if he should hold Serenity's hand, but he was pleasantly surprised when she grabbed his hand and held onto it. He was red as a beat from having that physical contact with her.

"…So Tristan," she started, "Is this your first…date?"

Tristan looked at Serenity in confusion, "…Why do you ask?"

Serenity shrugged, "Just wondering, I'm sorry if it sounded personal."

"Oh no, it's fine. And no, this isn't my first date," Tristan stated, "But it is the first one I've enjoyed so far."

"Really?" Serenity asked.

Tristan nodded, "Yeah. I went on a date about three years ago with a girl named Miho," Tristan explained, "I had a huge crush on her back in high school, but she was more interested in Ryou, so when we went on our date, she wouldn't stop asking me questions about him. It was kinda embarrassing. And that was when I realized that she would never like me that way, so I decided to end it."

"Really?" Serenity asked, earning a silent nod from Tristan, "…Oh. I'm sorry to hear that. You must have really liked her."

Tristan shrugged, "Yeah I did. But I gave up on her for two reasons besides the date."

"What were they?" Serenity asked.

"Well, one of them was that she moved to England when her dad got transferred." Tristan explained.

"Okay," Serenity said, "And what's the second reason?"

Before saying anything, Tristan looked at Serenity with a warm smile, "You."

Serenity was in shock as Tristan's last statement caught her completely off guard. He gave up on Miho because of her? She blinked a few times before saying anything, "Me?"

Tristan nodded, "Yeah. You were way nicer to me than Miho was, and you never got mad at me for small reasons."

"Oh," Serenity said as she started to remember something, "Well I was a bit disappointed with you at one time though."

Tristan let go of Serenity's hand and looked at her as he realized what she meant, "You mean about how I lied to you during Battle City, don't you?"

Serenity nodded, "Yeah…why did you lie to me?"

Tristan let out a great sigh. He knew they'd have to talk about this eventually, "…I wanted to impress you and get you to like me. But that was before I got to know you and what you were really like."

Serenity looked at Tristan in surprise, "Really?"

"Yeah," Tristan said, "And if it makes you feel any better, I promise to never lie to impress you ever again."

Suddenly, much to his surprise, Tristan felt Serenity take his hand again. He looked over at her and was pleasantly surprised to see her smiling at him. "Oh Tristan," she said, "I liked you before that, when you visited me in the hospital after my operation. I was glad to have company and you were fun to talk to."

Tristan didn't know what to say at first, but he then smiled back at his best friend's little sister, "It was a privilege. I'm glad we had that time together too, Serenity."

Tristan then let go of Serenity's hand and put his arm around her shoulders, causing Serenity to rest her head on him and sigh in contempt. After getting to know Tristan a little better, she felt that the two of them could be more than friends now.

As she and Tristan continued walking, something caught Serenity's attention. She looked and saw something that was a familiar sight to her. She then broke away from Tristan and started walking away.

"Serenity?" Tristan asked as he followed Serenity, who was walking towards a small playground, "You okay?"

Serenity didn't say anything. She simply went over to the playground and sat on one of the swings with a sad expression on her face as she held onto the sides of the swing.

Tristan went over to her and put his hand on her shoulder, "What's wrong?" he asked.

Serenity still didn't say anything for a moment, but she soon spoke up, "This is the playground Joey and I used to play at when we were little."

Tristan looked at Serenity in surprise, "It is?"

Serenity nodded, "Yeah…this was the last place we played at before…"

"…Before your mom separated you two, right?" Tristan asked.

Serenity paused for a few moments, "…Yes," she finally said. Suddenly, Serenity started to remember that day.

* * *

_Eleven-year-old Joey and eight-year-old Serenity were at the playground during the end of the day. They giggled as they played on the swings and watched the sunset. Suddenly, Joey's face turned to a serious expression, as if something was bothering him. Serenity noticed this and became worried._

_"Big brother?" she said, "What's wrong?"_

_"…Sis, there's something I want to tell you," Joey spoke up._

_"What is it?" Serenity asked._

_"Serenity," Joey said, "…You know how dad drinks a lot and it makes him mean? And how he and ma fight a lot because of it?"_

_Serenity looked as her brother in confusion, "Yeah?"_

_"Well, ma finally got tired of it," Joey explained, "and yesterday…she told dad she wants a divorce."_

_Serenity was surprised by her brother's words. Their parents were just now calling it quits? "A divorce?" she asked, "but then…what'll happen to us?"_

_"That's what I wanted to talk to you about most," Joey said, "I heard ma say that when she and dad finally split up…she wants to take you with her."_

_"Me?" Serenity said, "But…what about you?"_

_Joey sighed heavily, "It looks like I'm stuck with dad," he said sadly, "Ma said she wants to take you because of your eye problem, but she didn't say anything about wanting to take me."_

_Serenity's eyes widened in shock, "What?! But Joey, I don't wanna leave you!" she exclaimed, "Daddy might hurt you even more if no one's there to stop him!"_

_"And I don't want that either," Joey responded, "but if you're with ma, you'll be safer since you won't be around for him to hurt you."_

_Serenity started growing sad. While she knew that she'd be safer living away from her father, she was more worried about Joey's safety than her own. What if their father were to beat Joey even worse than he already does after she and their mother leave? Or what if he gets so drunk and angry he ends up putting Joey in the hospital or worse. Not to mention they were already in debt and with the lack of money because of their father's gambling Joey might live in poverty if their mother leaves him with that man. Serenity was on the brink of crying because of these thoughts._

_Joey noticed this, so he decided he had to cheer her up, "That's why tomorrow, I'm gonna give us the best day ever," he said with a smile._

_Serenity looked over at her brother, "Really?" she asked, earning her a smile from her big brother. "Can we go to the beach?"_

_"Sure, but we have to keep it a secret," Joey explained, "we don't want ma finding out."_

_Serenity nodded in understanding. "Okay," she said with a smile._

* * *

"And to this day I still don't know why she left Joey with our father." Serenity continued, "Our father was mean and was always drunk…and yet mom took me and left Joey with him where he could've…"

"It's okay, Serenity," Tristan said, trying to reassure her, "Nothing that bad happened to Joey. He's still alive and you're here with him now, and that's all that matters now."

"Yeah, but if Joey doesn't win custody of me, I'll have to go back with my mom," Serenity responded sadly.

Tristan started to worry about Serenity. He still had no idea what happened between her and her mother and only knew that she and Joey had a rocky relationship ever since she divorced his father and left with Serenity, but he knew that Serenity was not telling him something and decided to ask her, "If it's okay for me to ask, Serenity, why is Joey fighting your mom for custody of you?" he asked.

Serenity took a deep breath, she knew she'd have to tell Tristan eventually, so she might as well just tell him now, "Things weren't going so well at home after I got back from Battle City," she sadly explained, "Not long after I got back, almost immediately, mom started to become distant and cold for some reason, and she'd always start fights with me for reasons known only to her."

"Really?" Tristan asked.

Serenity nodded, "She used to care for me, but after I got my eye operation and came home…she changed, and ever since then I've been doing things on my own without her help."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Serenity," Tristan said. He was sad that Serenity was now being given the cold shoulder by her mother, it was bad enough that Joey never had any love from his mother and were distant from each other but now Serenity was feeling the backlash of what Joey felt for years because of their mother.

"But that's not the worst part," Serenity continued, "The night I left, my mom brought a stranger home, and when I was getting ready to leave to come here, he came downstairs into the kitchen and found me there. And the he tried to…"

Tristan looked at Serenity as he grew nervous about what she was going to say, "He tried to what?"

Serenity started to grow increasingly upset as she tried to finish her sentence, "He tried to…" Suddenly, without any warning, Serenity threw herself at Tristan, wrapped her arms around him tightly and sobbed heavily, "He tried to rape me!"

Tristan's eyes widened in shock as he looked at Serenity with complete concern for her safety, "What?!" After realizing that Serenity started to cry harder, Tristan put his arms back around her and held her gently but close. After a few minutes, Tristan broke the hug and looked at Serenity, "Are you alright? He didn't touch you, did he?"

Serenity sniffed, "I'm fine, Tristan, he didn't touch me. I kicked him and ran out the front door before he could do anything to me," she continued explaining, "But then my mother called me and demanded I come home and apologize, but I told her I wanted nothing to do with her. What she did that night was unforgivable, for bringing in a stranger and not protecting me, that was the last straw and I knew I had to leave her."

"Serenity, I am so sorry that happened to you," Tristan said, "If I had only known."

"It's okay, Tristan," Serenity said, trying to reassure him.

"I mean it," Tristan responded, "If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do."

Serenity was stunned by Tristan's words. She always knew Tristan had feelings for her, but she never knew until now how much she really meant to him.

Before Serenity could say anything, Tristan realized what he had said and immediately apologized, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"It's okay, Tristan, but…" Serenity started, "do you mean it? Am I really that important to you?"

Tristan nodded, "Yes you are."

Serenity's face then became flushed as she started breathing a little heavier, but she soon calmed down and gave Tristan a hug, "You're that important to me too, Tristan."

Tristan was surprised at first, but he then hugged Serenity back and smiled. After a few more minutes, Tristan broke the hug, "Come on. Let's get you back to Ryou and Daiana's."

Serenity nodded in agreement and she and Tristan then stood up and started walking towards the park exit. Suddenly, something stopped her, a feeling of some sort. She then looked around, but she didn't see anyone or anything else.

"What is it?" Tristan asked.

"I don't know…" Serenity said in confusion, "I feel like someone's watching us."

Tristan looked around, a protective expression on his face, but he didn't see anyone either, "Come on. Let's get out of here." He finally said as he and Serenity left the park. Unknown to them, a man came out from behind one of the trees. He reached into his leather jacket and took out a cellphone and dialed a number.

"Boss, I've found her," he said into his phone.

"Good," a voice said from the other line, "Wheeler's gonna pay for everything he's done to me."

* * *

Joey quietly entered his old apartment and immediately looked around. He saw dozens of beer cans lying around and the room smelled of alcohol and garbage. He also saw some dice and dirty magazines lying around with tabs from bars and casino's that were not yet paid. But there was no sign of his father, Jordan Wheeler.

_'Must be out drinking again,'_ Joey thought as he made his way to his bedroom. He then crouched down and started feeling under his bed. He felt around for a few moments until he felt something. He grabbed it and took it out from under the bed and looked at it with a smile, "There you are."

It was a VHS tape. It was covered in dust as it was hidden for three years. Joey was about to get up and leave with it when he heard something shatter next to him. He ducked and looked over and saw pieces of dark broken glass from a beer bottle with some of the liquid sliding down the wall. Joey felt his stomach drop as he looked behind him and jumped up in surprise to see a man standing in the door with brown bloodshot eyes and a very angry expression on his face. He was wearing a white stained shirt with army pants and a pair of boots, his dirty blonde hair was unruly and he had a five o' clock shadow.

"Dad!" Joey said in surprise.

* * *

**Me: Hey guys! Sorry this took so long, I've been working on this chapter a lot and couldn't post it until I got it just right, and the next chapter's probably going to take a little bit longer, but I'm definitely NOT giving up on it. I own none of these characters except for Sarah. I would also like to thank white pedal for helping me with this and the other chapters. Please review, but be nice!**


	5. Chapter 5

Joey couldn't move as he looked at his father. As he stood there, he felt his heart beat faster in his chest and his blood ran cold while being paralyzed with fear. He hadn't been this scared of his father since he was a child and couldn't defend himself. While it was true that Joey had to put up with his father's drunken rages before, He would probably be in for the fight of his life if Jordan ever found the tape he was hiding in his shirt from his father's view.

Jordan looked at his son with bloodshot eyes. "You shitty brat!" He shouted, "Where were you last night?!"

Joey then began to calm down as he slipped the tape into the pocket all the way inside of his jacket, his fears melted away and he glared at the man, "Since when do you care where I go?" Joey said, "I'm surprised that you aren't slurring your words and falling over. And usually when I get home you're passed out on the couch."

Jordan became even more infuriated, "Don't start that shit, boy!" Now I won't ask again! Where the fuck were you?!"

Joey rolled his eyes, "Not that you'd care or anything, but I was with my fiancé."

Jordan's bloodshot eyes grew wide in shock, "…Fiancé?"

"Yeah, you heard me," Joey said, "Sarah and I are getting hitched. Now if you don't mind, I'm leaving."

As Joey tried to leave, Jordan pushed him back away from the door, "Hold it!" he shouted, "Just what the fuck were you thinking?! Don't you realized that you're signing your own death warrant, boy?!"

"I did it because I love her!" Joey angrily exclaimed at his father.

"Love?! Bullshit!" Jordan shouted, "Listen here boy, you getting married will be the biggest mistake of your life, haven't you learned anything from my marriage to that bitch mother of yours?! The way she fucked us all over?! And if you marry that bitch Sarah, it'll be the same thing and you'll end up with nothing just like me! Your mother lied to me and ruined my life!"

"First of all, if you call Sarah a bitch again I'll kill you!" Joey threatened, "And second, the biggest mistake I ever made was trying to help you when I should've left you years ago! All my life I had to listen to you complaining how life is unfair to you when I busted my ass throughout elementary school, middle school and high school to pay the bills and your gambling debts because you were stupid enough to get us in trouble with gangs and you were too lazy to get a job! I lost my childhood and had a miserable life because of you and having to clean up your mess! And not only that, I ended up losing my little sister because of you acting like a jackass!"

Jordan yelled in frustration, "Who cares about that sister of yours?! She isn't your problem! And she's the one who put us in debt in the first place because of that disease of hers! She's probably blind now anyways!"

Joey froze, not realizing he never told his father, he stood up, "…No she's not…she got her eye operation." He said slowly.

Jordan was shocked,"…And how do you know that?!" he demanded.

"Because I'm the one who paid for it!" Joey shouted, "When she told me the time came for her sight to fade away, I entered the Duelist Kingdom Tournament and got the money to pay for her surgery! She can see again now and her sight is a lot better! I saved her from living in a dark and lonely world and living in solitary for the rest of her life!"

"You…son of a bitch!" Jordan shouted as he punched Joey in the face and knocked him to the floor, "Why didn't you get the money for your family?! Do you know how much debt we're in?!"

"You mean the debt YOU'RE in," Joey said as he wiped the blood from his mouth and stood up, "I'm done with you, old man! All you do is drink and gamble all our money away! But unlike you, I wanted to man up and save Serenity from going blind! How could you be so cruel to your own daughter?!"

Jordan glared at his son, "…She's no daughter of mine," He said coldly, "She ruined my life since the day she was born! Her illness cost me a fortune! The way I see it, Lynn should've had an abortion with her, that girl had ruined my life in more ways than one, even more than her own mother!

Joey began to grow even angrier at Jordan. How dare he say that about Serenity! "Wow. That's low, even for you," Joey said, "But I'll tell you something! Even if she weren't your daughter, she'd always be my sister! I've been both her brother and her father since the day she was born since you wouldn't be! I'll always protect her and I'll always be there for her! Now if you don't mind, I'm going home!"

"I don't think so!" Jordan shouted as he grabbed Joey's arm, "You're my son and you're going to obey me! You belong to me!"

Suddenly, without any warning, Joey kneed his father in the stomach and punched him in the face, knocking him to the floor unconscious, "Not this time," Joey said angrily, "You have no son. After everything you've done you won't only never see me again, you'll never see any member of the family I'll create someday. And from now on, you're on your own."

Joey looked one last time at the videotape and saw that it was still intact, which it was. He then gave his father one last glare and left the apartment.

* * *

Meanwhile, almost a hundred miles away in Haiku, Lynn walked into the living room of her house, wearing nothing but a pink bathrobe and yellow slippers. Her short, curly greying hair was messy and her lipstick was a little smeared. She was tired, but it didn't bother her in the least. All that mattered to her was that she was finally going to face her son in court in less than two weeks and would finally prove once and for all that Serenity belonged to her.

Lynn sat down on the couch and put her hand below her stomach, as she felt a little sore in the waist. _'Good thing I had a Tubal Ligation after that girl was born,'_ she thought to herself.

As Lynn sat there on the couch, something caught her eye. She turned and looked to see a framed picture of Serenity from when she was still a little girl. As Lynn took the picture and looked at it, she felt utterly disgusted. She thought of all the times Serenity had disobeyed her over the past two years, and grew increasingly angry at those memories. How dare Serenity act that way towards her own mother! Especially since Serenity had been so well behaved during the first fifteen years of her life and was saved from a miserable life with a alcoholic for a father. In Lynn's mind, Serenity was nothing but an ungrateful little brat.

"I should have known that you would be no use to me, you proved to be even more stubborn than your own brother!" Lynn said in frustration as she started to remember something from Joey and Serenity's childhood.

* * *

_It was late at night when Lynn returned home from who-knows-where. She walked into the house, and as expected, it was completely filthy and Jordan was passed out in the recliner. Lynn went into the kitchen to find her children. Serenity, who was eight at the time, was helping Joey, who was eleven, tend to his wounds from their father. Joey had bruises on his face and arms and a small cut on his right cheek._

_"Hold still, Joey," Serenity said as she applied disinfectant to the small cut on her brother Joey's cheek, causing him to hiss in pain, and then placed a Band-Aid over his wound._

_"Thanks sis," Joey said with a smile as he gave his little sister a big hug._

_"Joseph! Serenity!" Lynn shouted, "Why aren't you in bed?!"_

_Joey and Serenity jumped a little as they turned to see their mother standing in the kitchen doorway._

_"Mom!" Serenity said in surprise, "I was just helping Joey with-,"_

_"No excuses! Now both of you go to bed!" Lynn demanded._

_Serenity wanted to say something, but was silenced by her mother's glare, Serenity looked at the ground with a sad look and slowly walked out of the kitchen. Joey stood there in shock, but it soon subsided as he glared at his mother._

_"That was really uncalled for, mom!" Joey shouted, "How could you yell at your own daughter like that?! You didn't even let her explain what happened!"_

_"I don't have to explain myself to you, Joseph!" Lynn exclaimed, "Now go to bed!"_

_"Mom! Listen to me!" Joey said, "Why aren't you stopping this?!"_

_"What are you talking about?!" Lynn demanded._

_"Dad's getting worse!" Joey shouted, "He's always drinking, he's always angry, and he's always hitting me, and he almost hit Serenity today!"_

_"I don't have time for this, Joseph!" Lynn said, trying to make up an excuse, "Besides, you got in his way!"_

_"He was going to hurt Serenity! I had to protect her!" Joey defended, "He's making Serenity cry and he's putting this family in danger! Where were you when all of this was happening?!"_

_"It's not my fault he's like this!" Lynn shouted._

_"No, but it is your fault for not stopping this!" Joey exclaimed, "He's gambling and drinking all of our money away, mom! Serenity has medical bills that have to be paid, and someday she'll probably need an operation for her eyes! But if you let dad keep doing this, we'll run out of money and Serenity might go blind! You need to take this more seriously and do something before dad does something we'll all regret!"_

_Suddenly, without any warning, Lynn slapped Joey across the face and glared at him, "Don't tell me what to do in my marriage, Joseph! This is none of your concern! Who are you to criticize me?! I am your mother, and you're just a child!"_

_As Joey stood there rubbing his cheek, he glared back at his mother with a look of anger and disappointment, "…You know, I always thought that grownups were supposed to be responsible. That they were supposed to do the right thing and look out for their families," He began, "…But I guess I was wrong. Dad's an irresponsible drunk, and you're worse than him because you're sober, and you're nowhere to be found. You're never there when we need you, and I have the right to say your parenting and your marriage are crummy because this family is falling apart…and I'm the only one here that Serenity has. You should be ashamed of yourself for being so selfish."_

_Lynn shook her head, turned around and started walking away, "I'm going back out again, Joseph, and won't be back again for a while. Watch Serenity and don't wake your father up," she stated, causing Joey to grow even angrier._

_"Fine!" Joey shouted, "You know what?! Don't even bother coming back! You're never home anyways, and I'm always taking care of Serenity! All you're doing is making things worse!"_

_As Lynn left the house, she slammed the door behind her, but as she stood there on the front porch, a thought occurred to her from what her son said, "…Leave, huh?"_

* * *

Lynn grinded her teeth together in anger as she sat on the couch looking at the picture.

"Joseph always criticized me when it came to that bastard father of his or his sister. It was bad enough that he always called me out on my short comings, but now Serenity is doing the same thing," She said as her anger increased, "I should have had an abortion with them when I had the chance. They never should have existed!" She then threw the picture of Serenity against the wall, breaking it.

Lynn then stood up from the couch and walked out of the living room and into the kitchen, but before she could go back upstairs to her bedroom, the phone rang. She then went over to it and answered it.

"Hello?" Lynn said into the receiver.

_"Time's up, Lynn," _a man's voice from the other end of the line said, _"Where's the girl?"_

"I'm sorry, sir, she ran away," Lynn responded nervously, "but I will get her back."

_"You'd better,"_ the man said, _"My customers are growing impatient, and if you can't hold up your end of the bargain, you'll have to find another way to make due."_

"Rest assured, sir. Serenity will be back with me within two weeks and then she's all yours," Lynn stated, "That is a promise."

"Lynn!" called a voice from upstairs, who Lynn recognized as her lawyer, Andrew Collins, "Are you coming back to bed?!"

Lynn put her hand over the receiver and shouted upstairs, "In a minute!" She then moved her hand away from the phone and spoke back into it, "I have to go now, but I'll call you later."

_"Very well,"_ the man responded.

Lynn then hung up the phone and went back upstairs to her bedroom to find Mr. Collins in her bed, completely naked without the sheets covering him.

"Who called?" he asked as he stroked his already erect penis.

"No one important," Lynn said.

"Alright," Andrew said, "but what was that crashing sound I heard?"

Lynn hesitated for a moment, "…Just me blowing off steam," she explained.

"Alright," Andrew said as his face turned to a smirk, "Now then…where were we?"

"Like you don't know," Lynn said with a smirk of her own as she opened her robe, revealing her naked body, and walked over to Andrew, bent over, and began sucking on his penis, causing him to moan in pleasure.

* * *

Joey walked down the hallway of Ryou and Daiana's apartment building as he headed towards their apartment. The video was still in his jacket since he wanted to keep it safe and for future purposes in court. As Joey reached Ryou and Daiana's apartment, he knocked on the door and called for his sister, "Serenity?! It's Joey!"

Suddenly, the door opened, but instead of Serenity, it was Ryou.

"Joey?" Ryou said in confusion, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Serenity, Ryou," Joey explained.

"She's not here right now, Joey," Ryou said.

Joey's eyes widened in shock and worry at Ryou's statement, "What?! Where is she?!"

Before Ryou could say anything, he and Joey heard footsteps and giggling coming from the other end of the hallway. They then looked to see Serenity and Tristan walking towards them, holding hands. Joey's face turned red with rage at the sight of his little sister with his best friend.

"I had a great time, Tristan," Serenity said with a smile.

"Really?" Tristan asked, gaining him a nod from Serenity, "So does that mean we could go on a second date sometime?"

Serenity continued to smile, "I'd love to."

Tristan smiled back at her, "Great! So where should we go out next?"

"How about to your funeral!" Joey shouted, causing Tristan and Serenity to turn to see him.

"Joey?!" Serenity said in surprise. She then noticed the red mark on Joey's face, "What happened to you?!"

"I'll explain later, but right now, I want to know what you're doing with…him!" Joey demanded.

At the sight of Joey's angry face, Tristan instantly felt his stomach drop, "Uh…hi Joey."

"Don't 'hi Joey' me!" Joey exclaimed, "What is going on here, Tristan?!"

"Nothing!" Tristan said, trying to make the situation better, "We just went out on a date it all!"

"A DATE?!" Joey roared, causing Ryou to duck back inside the apartment.

"Hey, what's wrong with Serenity going on a date with me?" Tristan asked.

"She's my sister, you dope!" Joey shouted.

"Joey, please calm down!" Serenity exclaimed, trying to calm her brother.

"Calm down?!" Joey yelled, "Serenity! Tristan's a knucklehead! And besides that, it's too dangerous for you to be out in public now! Ma knows that you're back in Domino, and what if she came here without any of us knowing and tried to kidnap you?! You have to be more careful from now on, Serenity! Until the trial starts, you have to be inconspicuous! Ma said to you herself that she'd do anything to get you back, and she might do something drastic and you might end up getting hurt and I might never see you again!"

Hearing her brother's words caused Serenity to tear up a bit, "…J-Joey…"

Just then, Tristan put his arm around Serenity's shoulders and stepped back into the conversation, having worked up the confidence to stand up to Joey, "It's okay, Joey! I know what's going on!" He said, "Serenity told me everything! I know you're only doing this because you care about her, but I care about her too! I'd never let anything happen to her!"

"Look Tristan," Joey said, "I know you mean well, but this is bigger than anything else. Ma and I are going to court, and I have to protect Serenity at any cost! During the trial I don't want Ma to know where Serenity is living. I lost her years ago and I can't afford to let that happen again! This is our fight, Tristan!"

"I know it's your fight, Joey, but now it's my fight too," Tristan defended.

"How's that?" Joey asked.

"Because I chose to tell Tristan the truth," Serenity finally said, still a little upset.

"She trusts me, Joey," Tristan explained, "and she knows I would never let anyone hurt her."

"Joey, Tristan has been like a brother to you after our parents divorce," Serenity began, "and he was with you when you were getting the money for my operation. And now he wants to help us. And I know this is a family matter for us, but whether you like it or not, Tristan is family!"

Suddenly, Tristan's eyes lit up at Serenity's statement, _'She called me family?!'_ he thought, _'YES! I'm finally out of the friend zone!'_

Joey looked at his sister and best friend for a few moments with a blank expression on his face, but then he whined a bit, and then let out a great sigh, "…Alright. Tristan, when Serenity goes out, you go with her. And you'd better protect her, or else."

Serenity then smiled big and hugged her brother, "Thank you, Joey!"

Tristan smiled at this as well, "Yeah thanks. And don't worry, Joey. I'll protect Serenity like my life depended on it."

Joey then let go of Serenity, "You'd better, because it will."

"Now will you please tell me what happened to your face, Joey?" Serenity asked in concern.

"I went to dad's to get something and we had a…little fight," Joey explained.

Serenity gasped, "Are you alright?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine sis," Joey said, "It takes a lot more than one punch to keep me down."

"Okay," Serenity said.

"Well, I'd better get home to Sarah now," Joey said, "She's probably worried sick by now."

"Okay. I'll see you later, big brother," Serenity said as she gave Joey one last hug.

Joey then walked down the hallway and left the building. Serenity then looked back at Tristan and smiled.

"I should probably get going now too," Tristan stated.

"Right," Serenity said.

"I'll see you later, Serenity," Tristan said as he leaned in and kissed Serenity's cheek and started walking away, "Bye!"

Serenity stood there in complete shock, but then she smiled and blushed as she placed her hand on the spot where Tristan kissed her cheek. Tristan really was a sweet guy. He was someone Serenity could be proud to call her boyfriend.

Suddenly, Serenity was snapped out of her thoughts as she heard Ryou's voice, "Is it safe to come out now?"

* * *

About a half-hour later, Joey returned to his and Sarah's apartment. As he walked through the door, he rubbed his face a little as well as the giant bruise on his cheek. It wasn't bothering him that much before since he was used to his dad's beatings, but it was really starting to bother him after Serenity brought it up and saw the worry in her eyes. It reminded him of what they were kids and Serenity had to tend to Joey's wounds after their father attacked him because he was either intoxicated or had a bad day. But Joey didn't care, he would've taken a gunshot to get the videotape in his jacket pocket, especially when it was the tape that saved Serenity by letting Joey know it was time to be her hero again.

As Joey walked into the living room, Sarah came in from the kitchen and smiled at him, "Hey Tiger."

"Hey babe," Joey greeted back as he rubbed his face.

As Joey rubbed his face, Sarah saw the large bruise on his cheek and gasped, "Joey! What happened to your face?!" she exclaimed with worry as she rushed over to Joey.

"I got into a fight with my dad when I went home," Joey explained, "I mean, my old home."

"Are you alright?" Sarah asked in concern, "You want me to get you an ice pack for it?"

"I'm fine, it's nothing," Joey said, trying to reassure her.

"Like Hell it is!" Sarah shouted as she ran back into the kitchen and came back moments later with an ice pack. She then put the ice pack against Joey's cheek, causing him to hiss a little in pain, "Sorry Joey, but you've gotta be more careful from now on. If anything happened to you…"

"I'm fine, Sarah," Joey responded, "Really."

Sarah took a deep breath as she took the ice pack away from Joey's face, "Okay," she said, still not completely convinced, "Did you at least find what you were looking for at your dad's?"

"Yep," Joey said with a smile as he took the tape out of his jacket.

Sarah looked at the tape in confusion. Why would Joey risk his life for an old videotape?

"A videotape?" she asked.

"Yeah," Joey said as he nodded, "You still have a VCR, right?"

"Yeah, I still have one," Sarah said, "I still use it because there are still a lot of good movies on VHS that aren't on DVD or Blu-Ray yet."

"Good," Joey said as he went over to Sarah's TV and turned it and the VCR on.

"I still don't get it, Joey," Sarah said, still in confusion, "What's on that tape that's so important to you?"

"You'll see," Joey answered as he inserted the tape and pressed play.

The tape then started up, and within a few moments, it faded into an image of Serenity. She wore pink flannel pajamas and, by the looks of it, was in a hospital room, _"Hey there, big brother, how've you been? I really miss you."_

Sarah went wide-eyed in realization, "Wait. Isn't this-,"

"Yeah," Joey said with a sigh as he cut her off, "This is the tape Serenity sent me before I went to Duelist Kingdom."

"Wow," Sarah said. She had no idea that Joey had kept that tape after all these years.

As Joey and Sarah watched the tape, they heard Serenity giggle, _"I can't believe it's been six years since we've seen each other. I'll never forget the day mom took me to live with her."_

Joey tried to hold back his tears.

_"I'm sending you this video just so you won't forget your little sister's face. It seems like I'm running out of time."_ Joey and Sarah then saw tears forming in Serenity's eyes. _"I was hoping to see you once more before…Well, um…you understand. Bye bye, brother."_

"Oh man," Sarah said sadly.

_"So long. Take care, Joey."_ The tape then faded to static before Joey ejected it and turned the TV and VCR off.

Sarah looked at her fiancé, "So you kept that tape for three years, huh?"

Joey nodded, "Yeah. The last time I watched it was when I first got it," he explained as he put the tape on the coffee table, "This was when the doctors told her the time had come for her to lose her eyesight, and after watching this, I knew I had to do something to save Serenity before it was too late."

"Joey…I'm sorry," Sarah said in remorse.

"But luckily I got the money and Serenity had her operation…but," Suddenly, as Joey stopped mid-sentence, he grew angry, "it still wasn't enough to save her future! She may be able to see well now, but our mother still kept her away from me! And she still kept my little sister in solitary confinement like a prisoner when she was first taken away! I feel like everything I've done wasn't good enough and Serenity still isn't able to have her own life and future! And if I fail to get custody of her I-,"

Just as Joey was about to complete his statement, he was interrupted when turned him towards her and hugged him.

Joey was silent for a few moments, and then sighed, "I'm sorry I lost my cool, Sarah."

"It's okay, Joey," Sarah said, "I understand what you're going through. After all, you and Serenity aren't the only ones who grew up with horrible parents."

Joey nodded in agreement, "…I know. But what if I can't help Serenity this time?" he asked with worry, "How do I know I won't lose her again?"

Sarah then placed her hand on Joey's cheek, "Because you love her too much to let anything happen to her," she said, "You may not be out of the woods yet, but I know you'll succeed. And I know you'll be able to help her like you helped her two years ago…and like you helped me."

Joey let out a great sigh, "You're right," he said as his face turned to a smile, "Thanks babe."

Sarah then smiled back at her fiancé. She then closed her eyes, leaned in closer to Joey, and kissed him on the lips. Joey then wrapped his arms back around Sarah and started kissing her right back.

* * *

Later that evening, Daiana knocked on the bathroom door as she heard running water, carrying a stack of clean towels, "Serenity? You in there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," Serenity answered, "I'm just about to take a shower."

"Okay, can I come in for a sec?" Daiana asked, "I've got some clean towels."

"Sure," Serenity responded.

Daiana then entered the bathroom to find Serenity with a towel wrapped around her. "Here you go," she said as she placed the towels on the counter, "So how was your date with Tristan?"

"It was great," Serenity said with a smile, "Tristan and I had a wonderful time, and we even got to know each other better."

"That's great, Serenity!" Daiana said in excitement, "So would you say that you and Tristan are boyfriend and girlfriend now?"

"I'm not saying yes, but I'm not saying no either," Serenity explained.

Daiana looked at Serenity in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Well, Tristan's sweet and all, but he does have a history of lying to me," Serenity explained, "Like during Battle City, he lied to me saying that he was the one who taught Joey how to play Duel Monsters just to impress me, and then he later lied to me about Joey winning a duel to make me feel better because Joey was actually losing."

"Oh, I see," Daiana said.

"But on the other hand, he also protected me from danger and he was always there for me when Joey couldn't be," Serenity continued, "So I guess if I had to choose anyone to be my boyfriend, Tristan would probably be my first choice."

Daiana placed her hand on Serenity's shoulder and smiled, "That's a good choice, Serenity."

"Thanks," Serenity said as she smiled back.

"Well, I'd better let you get your shower now," Daiana said, "I'm gonna go wait for Ryou to get back, so just holler if you need anything."

Serenity nodded, "Will do."

Daiana then left the bathroom, closing the door behind her, and went into the living room and sat on the couch to wait for Ryou. A few minutes later, her waiting paid off as Ryou walked into the apartment and smiled warmly at her.

"Hello Daiana," he greeted her.

"Hi Ryou," Daiana greeted back.

Ryou then looked around for a moment, "Say, where's Serenity?" he asked.

"In the shower," Daiana explained.

"Oh okay," Ryou said as he sat down next to Daiana and put his arm around her, "So how are you?"

"Pretty good," Daiana said, "Yourself?"

"I'm fine," Ryou said as he smiled at her, "now that you're here."

Daiana smiled lovingly at her boyfriend. She was truly lucky to have him in her life, he was a true gentleman with a heart of gold.

"So how was your day?" she asked.

"It was okay, but there was one scary part," Ryou explained.

Daiana looked at him in confusion, "What scary part?"

"Well, Joey came by earlier today and he found out Serenity went on a date with Tristan," Ryou continued, "but on the plus side, he's letting Tristan accompany Serenity whenever she leaves the apartment."

"That's good," Daiana said, "You know, Serenity's thinking about letting Tristan be her boyfriend."

"Really?" Ryou asked, earning a nod from Daiana, "Huh. I always knew those two would end up together."

Daiana then giggled at her boyfriend's remark. She then cuddled up to Ryou and sighed happily.

"Hey Daiana," Ryou said after pausing for a few moments, "…What do you say we go up to the roof?"

"The roof?" Daiana asked in confusion.

Ryou then smiled at her and stood up, "Come on, I'll show you," he said as he took Daiana's hand and led her out of the apartment and up to the roof. As they walked through the door to the roof of the building, Daiana gasped as she saw that it had all been decorated with white Christmas lights and red roses. Ryou looked at his girlfriend and smiled, "Yugi, Téa and I did this earlier today. What do you think?"

Daiana looked around and was completely speechless, "…Oh Ryou…"

Ryou then walked over to her, "Daiana…you have been so amazing to me, from the day we met to this moment. You were with me from the darkest moments of my life to the joyous ones, and I want to continue to share those moments with you." Ryou then got down on one knee and took out a little black box and opened it, revealing a gold ring with a sparkling diamond in the center, "Daiana Whethers, will you marry me?"

Daiana looked at her boyfriend in shock and started breathing heavily as he took her left hand and slipped the ring onto her finger.

Ryou then stood up and smiled at her, "Well? What do you say?"

Daiana continued to breathe heavily until she looked at Ryou with a tearful smile, "YES!" she exclaimed happily, "YES I WILL MARRY YOU!"

Ryou then went wide-eyed as tears began to form in his eyes as well, "You will?!"

Daiana then leaped forward and wrapped her arms around Ryou and kissed his lips passionately.

"I love you so much, Daiana!" Ryou shouted with tears of joy.

"I love you too!" Daiana said as Ryou held her close. This truly was the happiest moment of her life.

* * *

**Me: Well, this chapter didn't take as long to write as the last one, and I really hope you guys like it. I would once again like to thank white pedal for role-playing and beta'ing this and the other chapters for me. You have been a TREMENDOUS help in my writing of this story. I only own Sarah and Mr. Collins, and white pedal owns the first names of Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler, while they and the other characters belong to the creators of Yu-Gi-Oh!. Please review, but only if you enjoyed it.**


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